About

Voces y Manos joins together voices and hands to create a healthier, more just world. At a time when health is denied to billions,  we believe “hands” to provide direct service and “voices” to advocate for justice are needed.
Our organization works to meet immediate health needs through direct service projects such as community health fairs, and to empower marginalized youth to become the future health providers and community leaders. We also provide meaningful, hands-on opportunities for North American university students to learn about and put into practice a people-centered approach to solving global health challenges.

PROGRAMS

Youth Empowerment and Scholarship Program:

Voces y Manos believes that youth have the full potential to transform the health conditions of their community. We are proudly supporting 33 high-school students with full scholarships.  Each of these youth earned his or her scholarship through participation in an intensive leadership training program in which they were partnered with a Voces y Manos volunteer to research a health-related problem facing their community and develop a community action project to address it.  Rising to this challenge, our students have successfully mobilized their communities to reforest barren hillsides, plant community gardens, and lobby local politicians to provide more frequent garbage collection services.

Health Projects:


For four years, community health fairs in Rabinal, Guatemala were Voces y Manos’ cornerstone health project.  The health fairs provided check-ups, screenings, and preventive care to over 2,000 patients.  Coordination of the health fairs required extensive collaboration by NGOs, the Ministry of Health, community members, and local students (who served at the fairs as volunteers).

With drastic cuts to the Guatemalan public health budget substantially limiting the participation of our partner organizations, health fairs were suspended in 2011.  We used this as an opportunity to listen to the needs, strengths, and desires of community health workers and our partner organizations through two days of extensive focus-group discussions.  The results of these focus groups have been drafted into a formal report, which will be translated to Spanish and sent to each of our key partners.  Ensuing discussion will give rise to strategic objectives to guide the next 4 years of our work in health.

Summer Volunteer Program:

Every summer, a group of volunteers spend the summer living and working in Rabinal, Guatemala. It is a meaningful, hand-on experience for those interested in global health, development, youth empowerment, and health care.

Global Health Internship:

This is a unique opportunity for students in the San Diego area to learn about global health issues, while gaining practical experience working with a nonprofit. Interns play an integral role in solidifying our organization’s core programs and building its future.